Scapegoat

The Scapegoat a designation given to someone who would serve to symbolically atone for the sins of his or her community. The community might be a town or village, or a nation. It's a rank rarely used these days, but in less enlightened times would be implemented to prevent or repair a calamity, or to cause the community to get itself right with Deity once more.
The Scapegoat would be determined by lot of every adult in a community. While the drawing was random, the person selected did have the option of refusing, though few did as the stigma of doing so would be worse than the distress of banishment.
In remote places, the call to be the scapegoat could mean death if it was wilderness they would be driven into. One person, by themselves in such circumstances rarely had much chance of survival. Larger communities would at least have resources available outside of the community that the scapegoat could utilize. However, few other inhabited locations were willing to accept the 'sins' of some other community, so the scapegoat was often reduced to roadside begging between towns.
If the scapegoat survived for a year and a day, they were considered free of the sins of the people and were allowed back. Some were well treated, others were still thought to contain the taint of the sins they took with them. Those who were most suspicious of the returning goat seemed to be the one with the greatest number of ongoing sins.
A scapegoat who safely survived the year and a day was allowed to wear a headband of braided red and yellow cords - a reference to the belt that cinched the robe they wore on the day of their banishment.

History

In the past this rank was given every forty years to some member of the community. They would be bathed in water scented with rare herbs, then anointed with oil and a robe of white would be placed upon them, tied with a belt of twisted red and gold cords. After prayers and a recited curse directing all the sins upon the 'goat', he or she would be driven from the community for a year and a day. A scapegoat attempting to come back before then would be slain to prevent the sins from returning with him or her.

Cultural Significance

This was a way for devout communities to make sure they were right with Deity, at least every long generation. As cultural standards changed, it became less about being right with God, and more about removing some undesirable from the place. In some circumstances it was even used as an excuse to execute an innocent person or a way of demonstrating power over a community.
In most places it is no longer practiced.

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Status

Mostly absent these days.